[Blog]()Production # Bill of materials: revisions that preserve work already underway A new recipe needs an effective date and scope; publishing it should leave an order's history explainable. **[Jonathan Perez]()**Co-founder · Design, product and sales October 8, 2026 · 8 min read **Short answer** Bind each released order to the materials revision authorized for its manufacture. Publish a new revision with an effective date and explicitly decide which orders may adopt it. Test an older order and a new one: quantities must remain explainable, even when publication is retried or two people edit the same recipe. ## Revision and released-order tests Compare effectivity, consumption, authorized migration and repeated recipe publication. [Download CSV worksheet]() In this guide - [What identifies a materials revision?]() - [Does publishing a recipe change work in progress?]() - [Example: two orders with explainable recipes]() - [How do you resolve overlapping changes?]() - [What should the supplier demonstrate?]() - [What should you bring to a diagnosis?]() ## What identifies a materials revision? A bill needs a product, revision, base quantity, components, units and consumption per unit. Include operations, authorized substitutions and relevant documents when they are part of manufacturing. The design file must relate to the recipe; a new PDF with the same filename cannot explain which part was used. Retain who proposed and approved the change, when it takes effect and which orders are affected. Business Central documents versions whose starting dates define validity, with certification before activation. [Production bill of materials versions](). This is a configuration reference. Protection of an already released order still needs testing: an effective date alone does not establish that nobody can modify its recipe. ## Does publishing a recipe change work in progress? Define three cases: an order still being planned, a released order without consumption, and an order with materials already used. A reasonable policy may allow recalculation of the first and require review for the others. If you authorize migration of an order, retain its previous version, new version, differences and treatment of prior consumption. Do not erase movements or retrospectively turn a used component into another that never left the warehouse. ## Example: two orders with explainable recipes **Synthetic assembly data** V1 uses 4 screws and 0.05 kg of adhesive per unit. V2 uses 6 screws and 0.04 kg. O20 releases 20 units with V1; O10 releases 10 with V2. These are illustrative quantities, without measured yields or costs. | Order |Revision and units |Screws |Adhesive | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | O20 |V1; 20 units |80 pieces |1.00 kg | | O10 |V2; 10 units |60 pieces |0.40 kg | | Both orders combined |Recipes retained |140 pieces |1.40 kg | O20 is released at 10:00. V2 becomes effective at 11:00, and O10 is released at 12:00. Under this exercise's policy, publishing V2 does not transform O20 into a requirement for 120 screws and 0.80 kg. If changing it is authorized, the difference must remain an explicit approved change. Retrying publication E02 neither creates V3 nor reapplies an adjustment to the same orders. ## How do you resolve overlapping changes? Two people may start from V1: one changes screws and another changes adhesive. Before publishing, compare against the currently effective revision. A last-save-wins combination can lose a necessary change. Show the conflict to its decision owner and preserve both proposals. For an urgent substitution, record its scope: one order, one lot or a validity period; avoid accidentally making it the permanent recipe. Odoo PLM describes past, current and future versions through engineering change orders, with history and related design files. [Version control](). Modules and configuration require verification. Available history helps investigation; it does not replace the technical decision about a safe change or prove an implementation delivered by Nightly. ## What should the supplier demonstrate? - Normal: O20 retains V1 and O10 uses V2; quantities, units and effectivity are available for review. - Exception: a concurrent proposal detects that its base changed; it cannot overwrite the effective recipe without review. - Started work: migrating an order explains prior consumption and pending changes, with the authorizer's identity. - Retry: repeating E02 keeps one publication and one application per authorized order. - Documents: the recipe retrieves its corresponding design and distinguishes it from a later revision's file. ## What should you bring to a diagnosis? Complete the [materials revision worksheet]() with a real recipe and change. The [production tracking guide]() covers progress; [footwear size runs]() test consumption by size. To scope [manufacturing software](), also bring an order that had already consumed material when its recipe changed. That exception clarifies requirements better than an empty revisions screen. ## Review a recipe that changed during production In a free diagnosis we can define which versions must be retained and which changes need authorization. - One bill of materials with units and base quantity. - Two revisions with dates or related design documents. - An order that had already used material when the recipe changed. [Book a free consultation]()[Ask on WhatsApp]() Related - [Production control]() - [Manufacturing software]() ## Frequently asked questions ### Is a version label in a note enough? Not if its components keep changing without a trace. The order needs to recover the authorized content, as well as its V1 label. ### Can an order that has started be updated? An authorized change may be possible, but it must retain the prior state and explain existing consumption, differences and pending decisions. Test that case in your system. ### Does an effective date automatically freeze every order? Do not assume so. Documentation describes version validity; released-order behavior depends on the product and configuration. ### What if two people revise the same recipe? Compare each proposal against its base version and the effective revision. Require an explicit conflict decision before publishing combined changes. ## Sources 1. [Create production bills of materials and versions]()Microsoft Learn 2. [Bill of materials version control]()Odoo Last updated: October 8, 2026 ## Keep reading [ProductionOct 8, 2026 ### Footwear production: size runs, pairs and material consumption]()[ProductionOct 8, 2026 ### Production scrap: consumption, loss and recoverable material]()[ProductionOct 8, 2026 ### Production rework: a linked order, consumption and traceable closure]() --- Canonical: https://nightlysoftware.com/en/blog/bill-of-materials-revisions Updated: 2026-10-08 Description: Test recipe revisions, effective dates and component quantities without silently changing orders that are already underway in production.